Bill and Mallory Samson had always loved the benefits of a big city. They enjoyed living on the outskirts of Chicago, taking advantage of the big city's benefits, the diversity of people and cultures, and the endless opportunities for entertainment and education. IN 2018, they took a leap of faith and moved to Highlands, North Carolina, having previously fallen in love with its natural beauty, charming town, great restaurants, and friendly people.
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The only worry was the lack of an exciting culture and access to music that the big city provided. Ha!
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​"We expected to find peace and tranquility on the Plateau, but we did not expect to find such a vibrant and diverse cultural scene here. We were pleasantly surprised to discover that the town had a wealth of arts and entertainment offerings. There was the Center for Life Enrichment (CLE), which curated a full season of thought-leaders and artists, the Performing Arts Center with a wide variety of cultural events, and a lively visual arts community, featuring the Bascom Center. We did not have to travel to Asheville or Atlanta to access these types of events."
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And with special events like the Highlands Food and Wine Festival and Bear Shadow festivals, they knew they didn't have to travel to see the musicians they would leave the area to see live. They also saw the pop-up events that occurred simultaneously with the festivals, but in town and open to non-ticket holders. ​
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One of these was a special food and music night at the Highlander Mountain House. A visiting chef prepared a fantastic menu, and a favorite singer-songwriter, Lily Hiatt, performed. After meeting Jason Reeves, owner of HMH, and Shelly Colvin, the angel responsible for arranging Lily's appearance and a fantastic singer-songwriter herself, we hatched a plan to make Highlands a destination for music lovers.
Initially, the non-profit has supported the vision of the Salon Series at HMH - to bring a variety of singer-songwriters to an intimate venue to promote their music and bring people to our special corner of the world to enjoy it. We envision this as something that could potentially be broadcast to the world in the future. The vision is expanding to support other events with music at their core, such as Porchfest or the Highlands-Cashiers Film Festival.
Our Decision to Start a Nonprofit
The Samsons were inspired by the Salon Series and its impact on the community. Music brings people together, sparks conversations, and enriches lives. They wanted to support this endeavor financially, but did not want it to be limited to just what they could provide. They decided to establish a nonprofit organization to promote and support events on the Plateau that are grounded in music.
The vision is to make Highlands a destination for music lovers and music makers. Over the lifespan of the Salon Series, every artist who has played has expressed amazement with the area, the venue, and the joy of connecting with their audience in an intimate way. As word has spread in the artistic community, the caliber of the artists has grown, and now bigger artists are selling out the venue and reporting how much they appreciate being invited after hearing the experiences of other artists.
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For the Salon Series alone, ticket sales are from 27 states. The reach is there.
Bringing it all together
This NFP would not be without the perfect combination of resources – financial support, a special venue, community support, and access to world-class talent.
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The Board includes the Samsons, Jason Reeves of Highlander Mountain House, Shelly Colvin, an artiste extraordinaire from Nashville, and Liz Bennett, owner of Swift Accounting and a key member of the community, and is committed to using donations to fund artists and support other community events.
Together, we named our nonprofit Rock the Plateau, to capture our mission in this specific place. We hope that through this nonprofit, we can share our passion for music with others and make a positive difference in our town and beyond. ​